AP(Eye) on the Hill is our biweekly highlight of significant federal updates, particularly those that impact AAPI communities regarding reproductive, immigration, and economic justice. Learn about NAPAWF’s and other national AAPI groups’ federal policy work while you’re out on the ground!

Policy Recap

Trump administration seeks to erase transgender identity through its definition of gender

Proposed public charge rule would hurt millions of immigrant families

Federal court hears arguments for Harvard admissions lawsuit

Attacks on the Affordable Care Act continue with new 1332 waiver guidance

Trump administration seeks to erase transgender identity through its definition of gender

Image source: NBC News

On Sunday, a leaked memo showed that the Trump administration intends to define sex as "a person's status as male or female based on immutable biological traits identifiable by or before birth." Such a definition would exclude transgender people from existing federal civil rights protections in healthcare, education, and employment. This most recent attack on the transgender community follows the Trump administrations moves to rescind protections for transgender students, ban transgender people from serving in the military, and remove protections from employment discrimination for transgender people.

A month ago, the Department of Homeland Security officially announced a proposed rule to "public charge" expansion that would discourage immigrants from using certain public benefits such as Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicare Part D, and housing assistance. Certain immigrants who use these benefits could be denied green card status. Since then, the administration has published the proposed rule on the federal register, opening it up to comments so that members of the general public can voice their feedback and arguments for or against the public charge expansion.

Last week, a federal district court in Boston began hearing arguments for Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, a lawsuit claiming that Harvard University's admissions practices discriminates against Asian Americans. Though the case is not directly concerned with affirmative action, the plaintiff, an organization led by conservative leader Edward Blum, is using Asian Americans as a wedge to advance a broader agenda to dismantle affirmative action policies in higher education. In fact, a strong majority of Asian Americans support affirmative action.

Attacks on the Affordable Care Act continue with new 1332 waiver guidance

Image source: PBS

On Monday, the Department of Health and Human Services issued proposed guidance on 1332 waivers that would make it easier for insurance companies to sell skimpier health plans that don't cover the required essential health benefits. 1332 waivers are a part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that allows states to modify the health insurance marketplace according to the state's needs. Under the new guidance, states can use ACA subsidies to support health insurance plans that don't cover certain required benefits such as prenatal care and mental health services or that can refuse to cover people with pre-existing conditions.

Even though Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed as Supreme Court Justice, our fight for the courts has not stopped. NAPAWF's legal team continues to oppose Trump's judicial nominations to our lower courts, where judges who have lifetime appoints also make decisions that set precedents in immigrant rights, reproductive rights, and economic justice. Stay vigilant and up to date on legal news by following our new legal blog, AP(Eye) on the Courts!

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